When the now-defunct FCA and PSA groups announced their merger, it caused quite a stir . The most pessimistic among them feared the worst, claiming they wouldn't be able to reach an agreement. The reasons given for this were varied, but one carried particular weight: they had been working together for many years and had never taken the plunge . But now they hadn't counted on one thing: to survive, they absolutely had to reach an understanding.
Hence the creation of Stellantis, the world's fourth-largest car manufacturer . With it, the French and Italians hope to generate multi-million dollar synergies, and it seems that will be the case. Just look at the electric vehicle offensive they've launched. But be aware that there are smaller collaborations that will also be very profitable. Did you know that the Peugeot 208 has debuted a Fiat engine? Yes, and to make matters even more interesting, it's the 1.0 FireFly engine from the Argo…
The Peugeot 1.0's 208 FireFly engine delivers 75 hp and is shared with the Fiat Argo...
To give you some context, we recently told you that the Mercosur Peugeot 208 would be taking this step . It would be using Fiat engines, and here's the official confirmation. With this engine, they're entering a market segment they haven't been in since discontinuing the 206. The reason is simple: in Brazil and the region, subcompacts with 1.0-liter engines are very popular.
This is because they represent the entry point to their respective ranges, with the corresponding price implications. In this case, Peugeot engineers have had to work for two years to adapt the engine block to the CMP platform. They have modified areas such as the cooling system, the climate control system, and the engine mounts. Furthermore, they have also tweaked aspects such as the intake, the exhaust system, and the transmission couplings.
And you might ask, what's the result in this Peugeot 208 1.0 FireFly? Well, the same as you'd find in a Fiat Argo with the same engine. That is, a three-cylinder, six-valve, naturally aspirated engine producing 75 hp, managed by a five-speed manual transmission. We don't yet know its official performance figures, although it doesn't take a genius to realize that its acceleration and top speed will be modest.
However, to boost sales, Peugeot has offered two trim levels : Like and Style. Even the base version includes features such as LED headlights, a sporty steering wheel, four airbags, and ESP and TCS. The top-of-the-line version boasts full LED headlights with LED daytime running lights and a wireless smartphone charger. Will this collaboration be successful? We'll see…
Source – Peugeot
